VELVET, A SWEET ANGEL

Velvet

This full moon weekend brought all kinds of unexpected events.  Saturday morning I was sitting on my bench outside, drinking my coffee, sketching out ideas for the magazine, with bella by my side.  I was out there for a little over an hour and the entire time I heard a kitten off in the distance crying non stop.  It broke my heart but I figured its mama was just out to get food.  Fast forward to that evening and I realized it was still crying, although it sounded like it was farther away.  James and I searched all over the woods and finally found out where the sound was coming from, a nearby brush pile outside of our fence.  I realized the sound was not farther away, it was just a weaker cry.  As we got closer we weren't even sure it was a kitten b/c the cry sounded so mangled.  My mama instincts kicked in high gear and I dug through the pile of brush until I could see where it was.  And there it was, a single baby kitten, with its eyes still closed and umbilical cord still dangling on... I picked it up and held it close, freaking out inside on what the right thing to do was.  I knew we didn't have anything to feed it, and I worried the mama would come back to find it gone.  I panicked and put it back and checked on it about an hour later and it was still there crying the best it could.  I couldn't take it any longer so I cuddled it back up and called James mom to see if any stores in Lakehills were still open that late at night.  Nothing was so we drove the half hours drive to the nearest walmart to get some milk replacement, an eye dropper and a heating pad.  I tried feeding it the whole way home but it was barely able to swallow at this point.  I could feel it getting weaker and weaker as we drove.  I can't remember ever feeling so focused on one thing in my life.  I sung to it, and prayed, and held it close.  Within 5 minutes of being back home the sweet angel passed away in my hands.  At that point I knew I did the right thing b/c it would not of made it through the night outside alone.  It was almost a full ounce under the average birth weight of a newborn kitten.  I'm sure something either happened to the mama in transition of moving her litter, or she knew something was wrong with this baby.  I'm just so glad that it was held through its transition and not all alone at night. 

Last night James and I held a little funeral for Velvet.  (I had already named her, she instantly reminded me of the velveteen rabbit).  I laid her to rest among some lavender, rose petals, a crystal, a butterfly friend to teach her about transformation and a mountain laurel seed from my mama, so she could show her around.  I feel like she is safe.  We put her right under the angel statue we recently moved from my parent's land, my mama's angel. 

I was amazed how quickly we could become attached to this little creature.  James and I both shed tears throughout the weekend.  The next morning James woke up and put his arms out wide for a hug and just said... 'velvet'.  It was so sweet to see the way it affected him too.  At first he was freaking out and upset at the idea of bringing a new cat into the house, but I realized later it was just a mask to hide the hurt of possibly losing it and not knowing how to deal with it. 

And THEN I read my horoscope from Aquarius Nation (the cancer one) and was floored to see how this event related to her reading, and how spot on it was.  This was meant to happen.  I am constantly amazed at how the universe works.

Sunday I found myself so contemplative and depressed, for just about the entire day.  I felt so heavy it was hard to move.  But I did some writing and fully felt what was suppose to be felt, and I know it had its purpose.  Then in the afternoon we had plans to go meet up with some friends for lunch, and I'm so glad I didn't cancel.  It was just about the best afternoon of conversations with people Ive had in so long.  It was full of life, laughter, tears, and inspiration.  We both left with napkin lists of movies to watch and music to listen to.  It was exactly what I need to pull me out of the dark.  This weekend has left me with a huge sense of humanity, connection to all things and my own cycles of life and death.

THREADS // A DAY OUT

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outfit details:  tank - fennec design co // skirt - thrifted // sandals - blowfish shoes // hat - lulu*s // leather bracelets - flourish leather + spiral drift + moorea seal + gypsy junkies // ring - bella and chloe // bag - novica // wallet - vintage


Just some fun photos we took on our day off the other day.  Ive always wanted to take some photos in front on this mural wall in Ingram.  It was super hot and sunny that day, so we just did some quick ones with my phone.  Id love to go do a real shoot there one day.  There are about 15 different murals!  Of course, my favorite one is with the deer and turkey, two of my companion animals.

This day was such a nice day.  We need to make more of these kinds of days happen!

I'm going to be quick today b/c I have lots to do before getting to see my Nanna today!  Yay!

p.s.  yes, I keep bones, sticks and feathers in our car console.  When we got our new car I told James I had dibs on this little space, and this is what I keep there.  He gets made fun of by his co-workers for it, but at least he doesn't mind. :)

BLUSHING WILD

Blushing Wild by The Wild Mystics

BY HILLARY RAIN

You have crossed a sacred portal into a kind of embodied sensuality that awakens you to a lush, abundant life where you will taste, laugh, feel and freely explore the deep, wet river of your feminine wild.”—The Wild Mystics, Blushing Wild

I am as unlikely a woman as there ever was to write about sexuality.

I grew up in a conservative, Biblical-fundamentalist Christian home. As the oldest of 11 children and well-versed in the fruitful ways of family and farm life, what I knew about sex was what I needed to know: how to make babies. That my body belonged to my husband, that my delights were for him alone and that in his sexual enjoyment of me, I would find sexual joy.

I entered marriage at 22, a virgin, shy but eager to embrace my new identity as a wife with a husband to care for and sexuality to explore within the safe boundaries of wedlock. I had only faint clues about what to expect; the little I knew was that newly-married men usually wanted sex everyday, that sex was this magical delicious thing that waiting until marriage somehow blessed with extra-ordinary bliss, and that I was to expect something enchanting and mysterious called an orgasm. 

My new husband did not want sex everyday.

Sex was not magical, delicious or blissful.

In fact, for a very long time it hurt.

I did not have an orgasm.

And in the 12 years since, I’ve not made a baby.

(Above excerpt taken from the upcoming eCourse Blushing Wild—A Sultry Embrace of Erotic Awakening, www.thewildmystics.com)

Blushing Wild by The Wild Mystics

::

As a self-proclaimed mystic I have long-embraced the non-dualism of a both-and approach to life … the necessary cycles of life-death-life, the paradoxes of mystery and knowledge, dark and light, pleasure and pain. Spirituality and sensuality, however, have taken longer to embrace as a whole, perhaps because for so long my approach to life was a denial of the self and rejection of the flesh. And even though I knew that sexual pleasure was good, it still reigned below the superiority of spiritual pursuits.

Blushing Wild by The Wild Mystics

And yet as I fleshed out my spirituality in the dark shadowlands of my soul, it came as no surprise when the topic of sexuality arose. “I’m questioning everything,” I said to my Wild Mystic co-creator Mandy. “I expected things of a spiritual nature but I had no idea that my sexuality would come up, too. I don’t know what to think about this.” 

“The dark has always been sexual for me,” she said. “Deeply sexual.” 

“What if we did an eCourse on this erotic sensuality? Because, um, we need to talk about this. And if it’s coming up for us, it has to be for others, too.” 

She did not hesitate. “I think we have to.” 

Blushing Wild is born out of our own need to incarnate a desperately-wanted conversation. We’ve always created the very thing we most need to find, and a sultry embrace of erotic awakening is one of them. This six-week eCourse features steamy reading and creative journaling assignments as we explore our psyches and ourSelves through soulwork and chakras, erotic poetry and succulent rituals, meaningful movement and provocative stories. Our very first launch begins August 24th and if you need this embodied experience in your life, if this is a conversation you’re craving or a journey your heart desires, we invite you to join us as we explore the deep, wet river of our feminine wild. Come with us? 

Read more and register at www.thewildmystics.com/blushing-wild. All who register will be entered to win one of two original canvas artworks by Mandy Steward of Messy Canvas. 

Please note: we are not licensed professional counselors or sexual therapists. Please speak to a mental health professional before embarking on this sojourn. 


Hillary Rain is a wild mystic who writes about spirituality, sensuality, and embodiment of the soul at www.spiritsoulearth.com.

THREADS // FRINGE FOR DAYS

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outfit details: top c/o gypsan // jeans - thrifted // boots + hat - lulu*s // necklaces - roots and feathers // rings - soliloquy jewelry + bella & chloe + roots and feathers // bag c/o gypsy soul collective


I honestly think this shirt was created just. for. me.  When Kathrine from Gypsan messaged me and told me she was sending me a surprise package that reminded her of me... I had not idea how spot on she was!  Seriously the most beautiful shirt Ive ever laid eyes on.  It has everything I love wrapped up in one item... earthy browns, fringe, floral, paislies, sheer fabric, bell sleeves, hi-lo... I mean come on!!!  I will treasure this shirt for a lifetime.  (Kathrine, if your reading this, you were so spot on its crazy!  Thank you doesn't cover it)... Btw, if you haven't checked out Gypsan, go do yourself a favor... so many adorable things in one place.  And the best part, its owned by an incredibly talented, beautiful women who shares so much positivity and spirit with the world.

Brown and Teal are my favorite colors, so between the bag, the shirt and the jewelry, I'm all over it... Color is such an interesting thing to me... how people are attracted to certain colors but turned off by others... Even within shades of the same color.  What are your favorite colors, and which ones do you not like (if any)?  Colors I typically sway away from are neons and primary colors.